And let us renew our pledge that we will make any sacrifice we may
be called upon to make to sustain our government, our liberty and
our American way of life.

REMARKS, FOURTH WORLD WIDE ARMED FORCES
EDUCATION CONFERENCE - BALTIMORE

December 6, 1963

It is indeed a privilege for me to welcome to Maryland such a dis-
tinguished group of educators. As many of you undoubtedly already
know, I place great faith and reliance in conferences such as the one
dial is to take place here today and tomorrow.

I have always held the opinion that if the government and society
are to function efficiently and smoothly, then we who serve in posi-
tions of public trust must rely heavily upon the advice and guidance
of experts. This is particularly true in the field of education. Our
future prosperity and security will depend to a very large degree on
the decisions we make now. Time and events have proven conclu-
sively that no nation can expect either to gain or maintain a posi-
tion of leadership among nations without sound programs for edu-
cating its citizens.

While its is true that most of our energies today are devoted to
examining ways and means of providing higher education for a grow-
ing population of young people, I do think it wise that we also scru-
tinize the higher education needs of other groups. Events of the past
several years have demonstrated how vital it is that we carefully pre-
pare now for the future higher educational needs of military person-
nel. Certainly it is true that as the military becomes more specialized,
greater demands are going to be placed upon those who choose the
military as a career. The men and women selected to perform these
specialized tasks must be capable of meeting greater demands upon
their intellect and it is our obligation to see that these men and
women are capable of meeting these demands.

But apart from being able to perform more specialized tasks, 1
think it wise if we devote greater attention to the role of the mili-
tary man in relation to society in general. It was not too long ago
that members of our armed forces were considered as a group apart
from the social fabric that forms this great nation of ours. This of
course, is no longer the case. The military is now an integral part of